Impatiens plant named Largo

ABSTRACT

A new and distant cultivar of Impatiens plant named Largo, characterized by its double flower form having ten petals, scarlet red flower color, flower diameter of 5.5 to 6.0 cm, reddish-purple flower spurs, green pedicels, six leaves in a whorl, continuous flowering above leaf canopy, medium green foliage with yellow-green midrib and no variegation, highly self-branching and floriferous habit, ability to tolerate both high and low temperature, and its adaptability to production in 10 cm up to 15-25 cm pots.

The present invention relates to a new and distinctive cultivar ofImpatiens plant, botanically known as Impatiens, commercially known asNew Guinea Impatiens, and known by the cultivar name Largo.

The new cultivar was developed in a controlled breeding programconducted by the inventor Lyndon W. Drewlow in Ashtabula, Ohio. Largowas created by crossing Mikkelsen Seedling No. 90-1095-1 (seed parent)with Mikkelsen Seedling No. 90-1054-1 (pollen parent). Both parents areproprietary cultivars used in the breeding program.

Asexual reproduction by terminal or stem cuttings carried out by orunder the supervision of the inventor at Ashtabula, Ohio has shown thatthe unique features of this new Impatiens are stabilized and arereproduced true to type in successive propagations.

The following combination of characteristics distinguish the newImpatiens from both its parent varieties and other cultivated Impatiensof this type known and used in the floriculture industry. Thedescription includes reference to comparison cultivars Mirach, disclosedin U.S. Plant Pat. No. 6,309, and Baroque, disclosed in a pendingapplication of the inventory.

1. Largo is a representative of an entirely new class of New GuineaImpatiens that have ten flower petals, double the number of petals ofsingle-flower types such as Mirach. Baroque is another cultivar in thedouble-flowered group.

2. Largo has scarlet red flower color (47A) while the flower color ofMirach is a more organge red (42A). Baroque has a purple rose flowercolor.

3. Largo has a flower diameter of 5.5 to 6.0 cm, larger than eitherBaroque (4.5 to 5.0 cm) or Mirach (5.0 to 5.5 cm).

4. The flower spur of Largo is reddish purple with a green tip, whileMirach has a deeper reddish purple spur with a reddish tip and Baroquehas a slight reddish tint to the spur and a green tip.

5. Largo has green flower pedicels with a reddish cast near the endwhere the pedicels are attached to the flower. Mirach has areddish-purple pedicel and Baroque has a green flower pedicel.

6. Largo has a solid green leaf with a glabrous upper surface, whileMirach has a cream variegated leaf with a slightly hirsute upper leafsurface, and Baroque has a solid green hirsute upper leaf surface.

7. The leaf length (9.0 cm) of Largo is similar to both Mirach andBaroque, but Largo has a wider leaf (3.5 to 4.0 cm) compared to Mirach(2.5 to 3.0 cm) and Baroque (3.0 to 3.5 cm).

8. Largo has mostly green stems with a trace of reddish cast near thenodes. Mirach has reddish-purple stems and Baroque is intermediate inred pigmentation in the stems.

9. Both Largo and Baroque are 5 to 7 days later to bloom than Mirach asit takes the double flowers with ten petals longer to develop and openthan five petals of the single-flowered Mirach.

10. Largo has a green area around the midrib on the backside of thestandard petal while Mirach has only a small area of green on the rib ofthe standard petal, and Baroque has green extending well into the petalarea.

11. Both Largo and Baroque are much more self-branched than Mirach.

In the photographic drawings, the color photo at the top illustrates inperspective view the overall appearance of Largo, with the colors beingas true as it is reasonably possible to obtain in a color reproductionof this type. The color photo was taken on Sep. 24, 1993 under naturallight under 40% saran in a shaded glass greenhouse in Ashtabula, Ohio ona sunny day. The black and white photo on the bottom shows three (3)views of a typical flower of the new cultivar.

The following is a detailed description of my new cultivar, based onplants produced in greenhouses in Ashtabula, Ohio during the summerseason of the year. Plants were grown in 15 cm pots and measurementswere taken 18 weeks after rooted cutting were planted. Heightmeasurements were taken from the soil line of the container. The plantswere grown at 65°-68° F. night temperatures under 3000-4000 foot candlesof light and with 250 ppm nitrogen, 75 ppm potassium, and 250 ppmphosphorous nutritional levels, with trace elements added. Habit ofgrowth, foliage coloration, leaf variegation, size of leaves and flowersize will be influenced by nutritional and environmental conditions,without, however, any variance in the genotype.

Color references are made to the Royal Horticultural Society ColourChart except where general terms of ordinary dictionary significance areused.

Parentage: A controlled cross between female parent Mikkelsen SeedlingNo. 90-1095-1 and male parent Mikkelsen Seedling 90-1054-1.

Propagation:

(A) Type cutting.--Stem tip is 15 mm long and will develop 4 to 5 cmlong in 18 to 21 days.

(B) Time to root.--8-10 days at 23° C. summer; 10-12 days at 20° C.winter.

(C) Rooting habit.--Heavy, fibrous.

Plant description:

(A) Form and habit of growth.--Semi-upright, self-branched, intermediatein height, flowers above leaf canopy; continuous flowering; vigorousgrowing herb.

(B) Foliage.--Deep green with yellow-green midrib; no variegation. (1)Size: 8.5 to 9.5 cm long and 3.5 to 4.0 cm wide for average mature leaf.(2) Shape: Lanceolate with acuminate apex and acute base. (3) Texture:Both upper and lower surfaces are glabrous. (4) Margin: Finely serratedwith fine ciliate. (5) Color: Young foliage, top side is 146A; underside is 147C; mature foliage, top side is 147A; under side is 148C. (6)Veination: Pinnate, green veins.

Flowering description:

(A) Flowering habits.--Flowers continuously from leaf whorl in aprogressively orderly manner with usually two flowers per leaf axil. Allfirst flowers in a whorl open before the second flower in the leaf axilof that whorl start to open. When second flowers of a leaf axil start toopen the first flowers of a leaf axil of whorl above starts to open. Ittakes 5 to 7 days for a mature bud to fully open and then the flower maylast two weeks or longer depending on the environment.

(B) Natural flowering season.--Indeterminant and continuous. Quantity offlowering increases with increasing levels of light.

(C) Flower buds.--Ellipsoidal, flowers perfect; reddish-purple spur withgreen tips 4.5 cm long on mature bud, with throat behind the ovary andoriginating from the major sepal.

(D) Flowers borne.--On individual 3.5 to 4.0 cm green pedicels withreddish cast near end attached to flower, from a whorl of usually 6leaves flowering progressively around the whorl as buds and leavesdevelop. Two flowers per leaf axil is normal.

(E) Quantity of flowers.--Highly floriferous because of self-branchingnature of plant, two flowers per leaf axil, and long lasting flowers.

(F) Diameter of flower.--5.5 to 6.0 cm.

(G) Petals.--(1) Shape: Heart, keel petals of bottom whorl of petals arethe largest. (2) Color: Top side in summer when opening is 47A, fadingto 47B; under side is 47B. (3) Number of petals: Ten. (4) Type ofpetals: Standard: Both whorls have a standard petal; Wings: Two sets ofwing petals; Keel: Two sets of keel petals.

(H) Reproductive organs.--(1) Stamens: Five (5) in number. (a) Anther:Hooded shape; color is red. (b) Pollen color: Cream. (2) Pistils: (a)Stigma shape: Five (5), segmented column; color is greenish yellow. (b)Style color: Greenish yellow. (c) Ovaries: Five (5) in number; size is 5mm when mature; color is green.

Disease resistance: No significant insect or disease problems to date.

OTHER IMPORTANT CHARACTERISTICS

1. Self-branching characteristic, and semi-upright habit andintermediate height make Largo suitable for 10 cm pot production, butcultivar is vigorous enough for 15 and 25 cm pot production as well.

2. Largo can withstand both high temperatures and sunlight as well aslow temperatures (40° to 50° F.), thus extending the outside growingseason and locations the cultivar can be planted.

3. The ten petal flowers result in a fuller flower as compared to thenormal five petal flower types. Thus, a double-flowered plant with thesame number of flowers as a single-flowered plant is substantially morecolorful.

I claim:
 1. A new and distinct cultivar of Impatiens plant named Largo,as illustrated and described.